By Shamela Ghafoor

The theme of Escape could not be tackled without mention of master escapologist Harry Houdini. Houdini, born Erik Weisz (1874–1926), was a Hungarian-American Escapologist, who took his professional name from his contemporary, French magician Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin. Robert-Houdin, now known as the father of modern magic, inspired Houdini with feats of endurance and escape never before witnessed, such as catching a bullet in his teeth.

Throughout the early 20th century, Houdini achieved renown throughout the US and Europe by freeing himself from jails, handcuffs, chains, ropes and straight-jackets, often in plain sight of street audiences. For the Chinese Water Torture Cell, performed 1912, he hung suspended upside down from stocks in a locked glass and steel cabinet full of water, and held his breath for more than three minutes until he managed to escape.

Countless books were published explaining some of Houdini's tricks, including the handcuff escape, where he concealed lock picks or keys in his stomach, which he could regurgitate at will. When tied down by ropes or straight-jackets he gained ‘wiggle room’ by enlarging his shoulders and chest, moving his arms slightly away from his body and then dislocating his shoulders. Some critics argued that many of his escapes were rigged via bogus handcuffs, hidden keys, or stage assistance.  

English illusionist and hypnotist Charles Morritt is thought to have worked with Houdini and sold him several of his greatest magic tricks, which Houdini later took credit for. These included the vanishing elephant trick, in which an elephant entered a box, where it was hidden with the aide of a trainer and a large diagonal mirror. Once the elephant was in place and the doors were re-opened, the audience believed they were seeing an empty box, rather than one half of the interior and its reflection.  

Despite the number of books and articles written about Houdini's life and the impact he has made, little is known about his illusions and their origins. Did Houdini learn from Robert-Houdin or Charles Morritt? Is Houdini's legend based on lies and just how much of it is magic? The world may never know. Houdini was and still remains an enigma. Perhaps this is his greatest trick of all. 

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